Search

Taillessness (absence of the caudal fin and some of the caudal peduncle) and skeletal deformity is described in 2 striped piggy Pomadasys stridens (Haemulidae) specimens collected from the Persian Gulf along the coast of Hormuz Island, Iran. Deformed specimens were entirely missing caudal fins along with at least 1 caudal vertebra, caudal portions of vertebral columns were bent dorsoventrally, posterior sections of swim bladders were reduced in size, and caudal vertebral centra were compacted anteroposteriorly in 1 individual. Environmental conditions in the Persian Gulf may be responsible for these deformities, but genetic causes cannot be entirely ruled out.